GEELONG coach Chris Scott was keen to avoid any talk about the list management issues facing his club in the aftermath of the Cats' heartbreaking preliminary final loss to Hawthorn on Friday night.
But it seems likely that veterans Paul Chapman, Josh Hunt and Joel Corey, all of whom are 31, have played their last games in the navy blue and white hoops.
A one-match suspension meant Chapman – a three-time premiership player – was denied the chance to take on the Hawks.
The only positive to come out of the night for Chapman was that he will potentially go down as having never played in a losing team against the Hawks after the 2008 Grand Final.
Chapman's good mate Hunt was subbed out and replaced by Josh Caddy during the third quarter after a below-par display.
Corey gathered 16 possessions and won two clearances, but the 31-year-old didn't have a great impact on the contest.
"I'm not going to talk about the older players too much," Scott said at his post-match press conference after the five-point defeat on Friday night.
"I don't believe in making emotional decisions this close to the finish of the game.
"When we look at our season this year, I'm so proud of the way our older players have helped our younger ones through.
"We've transitioned a lot of players into our senior team, and I think we saw tonight that there's a lot to be optimistic about.
"Maybe in a couple of months we'll look at it … in a slightly more calculating manner.
"But right at the moment I'm not going to get drawn into being too hard because I'm really proud of our footy club."
Although he was shattered by the way his team lost after leading by 20 points at three-quarter time, Scott could not have been more magnanimous in defeat.
"I think we've won well in the last few years, and it's really important that we lose well," he said.
"Hawthorn were better on the night. Probably missed some shots they could've taken and maybe could have won the game easily.
"We played not only a great football team but football club. We respect them greatly.
"I think everyone thinks that a little bit of theatre around the rivalry is good for the game, and I agree.
"I think they'd probably agree as well, through gritted teeth.
"But they were good. They deserved it."
Hawthorn went into the game on the back of a week's rest, and Scott admitted his men probably ran out of legs in the finish.
"I'll put some thought into it when this feeling subsides … in about 10 years, I reckon," he said.
"But excuse me if I don't go into the ‘what if's' too much."
The Cats, who were trying to defeat the Hawks for the 12th straight time, seemed to lose their nerve on occasions in the final five minutes.
Mitch Duncan took two strong marks deep in defence only to blaze away with hurried long kicks up the corridor, both of which were marked by Hawthorn defender Ben Stratton.
"The last five minutes was played as if we were a goal down with 30 seconds to play," Scott said.
"We'd probably do that a little differently next time."
Despite all that, Geelong's Travis Varcoe had the chance to level the scores with 31 seconds left, but he missed a shot from 35m out on the run.
Asked what was to blame for a wayward kick from such a skilful player, Scott said: "I'd be surprised if it was the pressure of the moment.
"Good players make slight errors. I thought it was a really error-riddled game tonight.
"He did well to get himself into the position.
"If we're going to boil it down to shots at goal, we're clutching at straws, I reckon."
